Homecoming
by lurkingliz
Summary: Just a story about some RP stuff
1. Chapter 1

"Are you sure about this, TJ?"

Talia met Vance's eyes. "I shouldn't have given up on him before." Her attention turned back to the equipment being set up in the previously empty warehouse. A lot of dust had collected in seventeen years.

"I meant with Nina. This might not be safe. If something goes wrong…" The steely look in her yellow eyes made him fall silent. This wasn't the first time they'd had this conversation. Vance turned back to the girl being outfitted with electrodes. She was the spitting image of her mother. Nina turned around and gave a thumbs up.

TJ took a deep breath before initiating the countdown sequence. "Open the portal on my mark. Three. Two. One…"

Swirling energy left Nina's hands and webbed across the empty archway like a dream catcher. It bounced around inside the circle until a portal formed. Vance flipped a few switches and the bouncing intensified. The building kinetic energy started to push Nina backwards as she struggled to maintain control.

TJ's hand hovered over the killswitch."Wait! There's something coming through!" Vance's shout drew her attention away from her daughter. A shadowy outline was forming into a figure. Could it really be-?

All of a sudden the portal burst into thousands of balls of energy. There was barely enough time for Vance to put up a teke shield. "Nina!" TJ fought against Vance's protective grasp. She needn't have worried, however. Someone was already helping the teenager up.

Nina stared at the stranger. His blond hair was messy, goggle lenses broken. The blue and orange costume was torn, revealing a whole mess of scars. And yet, a lopsided grin was plastered over his face. "Heya, Teej. What's a girl like you doing in a place like this?" Nina's eyes blinked a few times before the guy collapsed.


	2. Chapter 2

The darkness was a nice change of pace from being surrounded by bright bouncing balls of kinetic energy. However, familiar sounds began to seep through the blackness. Was that…Led Zeppelin? "Heh, Misty Mountain Hop? Classic," Robbie croaked.

When he opened his eyes a familiar face greeted him. Robbie squinted against the bright light, but there she was. No mirage here.

"Thank God you're awake." Relief flooded TJ's features. "You had me worried there."

"You know nothing can keep ol' Speedball down for long, babe. Uh, how long was I out exactly?"

There was a pause. "You've been passed out here for 3 days."

3 days? That explained the desert in his throat. "Thanks for the rescue. The kinetic dimension isn't my favorite ride to be on," Robbie said with a grateful smile. He took her hand in his, eliciting the slightest of flinches from TJ. What was up with her? She kept giving him a weird look.

Robbie gave her hand a gentle squeeze and his fingers brushed against something on her wrist. It strongly resembled an image inducer. TJ followed his gaze. "Robbie…"

"I don't know who you are, but I'm impressed with how you mimicked my girlfriend's voice. Really, an Oscar-worthy performance." The anger was creeping into his voice and his grip on her hand tightened.

"Robbie, listen."

"I swear, if you've done something to her you'll regret ever bringing me back," he growled lowly.

"It's me, I swear. It's Lady Hexcrawler." His hand relaxed a bit at that name. "I…you've been gone for awhile. I didn't want to freak you out."

Robbie paused. He didn't like the way TJ was talking and last time he'd lost a year of his life. "Show me."

Reluctantly, TJ removed the image inducer from her wrist. Her long hair disappeared, replaced by a shorter pixie look. Subtle wrinkles formed on her face, but that wasn't what Robbie was focused on. Her eyes…God, he'd know those eyes anywhere. Relief coursed through him.

"How long?" The question caught in his throat. Robbie knew he wasn't going to like the answer. The sadness in those glowing yellow eyes had tipped him off and the shaky breath TJ drew didn't help matters.

"…Seventeen years."

It hit him like a ton of bricks. "S-Seventeen? Like one-seven, seventeen?" The world was spinning. Colored spots began to fill his vision. Great, he thought, I'm going to pass out again.

"Robbie, please calm down," TJ urged. His vision focused but the spots were still there, spilling off the bed. Wait, that wasn't right. Not spots, balls.

"Crap!" After a moment's concentration the orange kinetic spheres disappeared. "Sorry, I just…that's a long freakin' time."

"Yeah, it is…" she agreed. Robbie looked back into her eyes and noticed a deep sadness he hadn't before. That look broke his heart. He hated to think that he'd caused her pain, even if it was by accident. His arms wrapped around her in a comforting hug with his hands awkwardly going to stroke long hair that no longer existed.

"I was gonna guess 5 years. You haven't aged a day," he murmured before pulling back to look at her. "You're gorgeous. You're always gorgeous," he remarked. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth and TJ couldn't help but reciprocate.

"You still have that same goofy look on your face," she said.

"Aw admit it, you missed me." The words left Robbie's mouth before he realized what he said. TJ's defenses cracked before his eyes are tears slowly rolled down her cheeks. She was mourning the lost years, but also crying for joy at having him back. He reached up to gently wipe her cheeks with his thumb.

"You have no idea the hole you left behind," she whispered.

"It's ok, TJ. I'm here now. It's all going to be ok," Robbie whispered back.


End file.
